Gates: U.S. has 'no inclination' to release detained Iranians

The Iranian Embassy in Baghdad

The US military has no plans to release five Iranians held in Iraq on accusations they were providing material support to militants responsible for attacks on US troops, US Defence Secretary Robert Gates said Thursday."There's no inclination right now to let them go," Gates said.

The US military arrested the five men, accusing them of being members of Iran's Revolutionary Guard and supporting violence in Iraq, in northern Iraq in January. Iran says they were consulate officers who were not involved in hostile activities.

The US military has allowed the International Committee of the Red Cross to visit the detainees, General Peter Pace, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said.

The Iranians have requested access to the individuals, a possibility advocated by the Iraqi government that Gates did not rule out.

"Iraqi government officials and US officials are discussing if there's some way, perhaps, that there could be some kind of Iranian access to them," Gates said.

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